The Greatest Story Never Told
"The Greatest Story Never Told" is the seventh episode of the first season of , and the seventh of the overall series. It originally aired on September 11, 2004. The Justice League is locked in epic battle with Mordru in downtown Metropolis, but the real story is what happens to Booster Gold while he's supposed to be on "crowd control". Plot Booster Gold is a glory-seeking showboat from the future, but despite his aspirations of attaining wealth and glory as a member of the Justice League, he can't seem to catch a break. Between getting snubbed by J'onn J'onzz for high-profile League missions and being mistaken for Green Lantern by autograph seekers, Booster is sick of being treated like a second-stringer. Ironically, this is the very reason why he's snubbed by many of the other League members; He's less motivated by genuine altruism and more interested in becoming a celebrity. stuck doing crowd control.]] After practically begging J'onn for more work, he is dispatched with the Justice League reserves to aid the first team during a battle with the powerful sorcerer Mordru. However, upon arrival, Booster and Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man are relegated to crowd control duties by Batman. Booster and Ralph jaw for a bit about their perceived lower status just as Wonder Woman arrives asking for help — but only from Elongated Man. Booster and his robot sidekick/cheerleader Skeets attempt to make the most of their position, but the closest thing to action Booster finds is the rescue of a child's ant farm from a burning building - and his reward for this is once again being called "Green Lantern". However, there is an accident at a local S.T.A.R. Labs facility; a young and attractive physicist named Dr. Simmons informs Booster that one of her colleagues was caught in a power surge while working on an experiment. As a result, the man is now a miniature black hole. Booster is excited by a chance to save the world and maybe even get the girl, so he and Skeets agree to try and stop the black hole with a special disruptor collar. Unfortunately, Booster becomes discouraged as his plans go awry for various reasons: * Booster is almost flattened by a car hurled from the scene of the main battle, miles away. * A wild cast of Mordu's magic accidentally brings a ten-story building in Booster's vicinity to life—with an appetite. * Skeets is sucked into the mini-black hole. In the middle of all this, Booster somehow finds time to deliver a baby to a woman stuck in an abandoned ambulance - and the new mother shows her gratitude with the words, "Thank you, Green Lantern". A dejected Booster admits to Simmons that in the future he was actually a failure, and that he essentially ran away to the 21st century in a desperate attempt to be somebody. However, with the encouragement of his "damsel-in-distress", Booster is able to heroically attach the disruptor collar and save the world. All of the consumed matter, Skeets included, is ejected back into the world safe and sound. The threat has ended, yet Booster is still down on himself and passes up an opportunity to kiss Simmons, despite after-the-fact encouragement from Skeets. Naturally, no one outside of the parties involved know what happened. A few miles downtown, the Justice League has just (in a literal sense) wrapped up the Mordru situation thanks to Elongated Man. Batman lectures Booster for leaving his crowd control post; the would-be Justice League superstar is unable to put his explanation into words and instead simply sulks. .]] Then one voice calls out, "Excuse me, Green Lantern?" Booster Gold angrily prepares for another reminder that he is not Green Lantern; but instead he sees Dr. Simmons before him, who admits that she was only joking. Booster is greatly cheered up by her reappearance, even more because the grateful doctor is willing to take him on a date, leaving Elongated Man alone for clean-up duty. Background information Home video releases * * Justice League - The Complete Series (DVD) * Justice League Unlimited - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) * Justice League Unlimited - Joining Forces (DVD) * Justice League: 3-Pack Fun (DVD) Production notes * This episode was originally going to focus on superhero Firestorm but it was changed to Booster Gold.Bruce Timm at ToonZone Production inconsistencies * During the briefing at the Watchtower, Doctor Light turns and runs off to the teleporter before her name is called. * When Tracy is comforting Daniel after the collar has been applied, all of the objects are expunged back out the black hole, save for the two paramedics. Trivia * At one point Booster Gold talks with a Superman/Batman hybrid with Wonder Woman's voice, this form resembles Composite Superman. * Skeets' line, "My gosh! It was full of stars!" after being ejected from the black hole is a reference to a similar comment made by David Bowman on the Stargate in 2001: A Space Odyssey. * His Milton quote "They also serve who only stand and wait" comes from Sonnet XIX. * Plastic Man is mentioned in this episode but is never seen in the DCAU. Whether his non-depiction is simply an oversight or due to legal issues is not clear. Plastic Man is merely a dropped name and a rare "name only" cameo by a DC Comics superhero. * Skeets is voiced by Billy West, the voice of space delivery boy Fry (and other characters) on Futurama; in that series, West plays a human from the past whose best friend is a robot; in this series he plays the robotic best friend of a human from the future. * Chris Cox replaces George Eads as the voice of Captain Atom. * Lori Loughlin played Carolyn Lance, a former Black Canary, and the mother of one of the main heroes, on the short-lived Birds of Prey TV series. * Booster says "Energize!" on the transporter pad, in tribute to Star Trek. * While a reluctant Booster performs crowd control, a little girl drops a doll which is similar to the exploding doll used by Joker on Wonder Woman in "Injustice for All", except that the doll's dress is turquoise instead of red. Cast Uncredited appearances * Atom-Smasher * Aztek * Blue Devil * Crimson Avenger * Dove * Dr. Light * Dr. Mid-Nite * Fire * Hawk * Ice * Huntress * The Ray * Rocket Red * Shining Knight * Stargirl * Starman * S.T.R.I.P.E. * Supergirl * Superman * Thunderbolt * Vibe * Vigilante * Wildcat * Mordru Quotes References Category:A to Z Greatest Story Never Told, The Greatest Story Never Told, The